Melbourne man guilty of trying to fight against Syria

A MELBOURNE man is facing a lengthy jail term after being found guilty of three charges relating to plans to travel to Syria to fight against the government of Bashar al-Assad.

Amin Mohamed, 25, was charged in December with three counts of making preparations to travel to a foreign country to engage in hostile acts.

The case against Mohamed detailed how he applied for a New Zealand passport to enter Syria, booked flights to Turkey, and obtained the contact details of a Turkish resident with the intent of fighting in Syria.

Mohamed had pleaded not guilty to the charges. His lawyers argued he had done none of these things in preparation to engage in hostilities in Syria.

But he was found guilty on all counts by a jury in the Victorian Supreme Court sitting in Melbourne. The maximum sentence for each charge is 10 years.